How Is Testosterone Made

How Testosterone Is Made

The male
body on average, produces 7mg of testosterone each day. However, this 19-carbon
steroid hormone is not all floating around in the bloodstream for use. There
are three sub-types of testosterone to help understand what can be easily
accessed and what cannot; free testosterone, SHBG-bound and albumin-bound
testosterone.

1. Free
Testosterone: This is the purest form of the hormone, and it is 'free' because
there are no proteins attached to it. Because it is not bound to anything, it
is free to enter cells and activate receptors as it likes. Even though this is
a highly beneficial form of testosterone it only makes up about 2 or 3 percent
of the body's overall count. To get the maximum benefits of testosterone, this
free version is the one to increase in the bloodstream. It is even possible to
free up some of the bound-testosterone if needed.

2.
SHBG-Bound Testosterone: Close to 40 or 50% of the total testosterone in the
body is bound to the protein known as SHBG (sex hormone binding globulin). This
protein is produced in the liver and plays a vital role in regulating the free
testosterone levels. This SHBG-bound version is inactive so your body cannot
use it for muscle gain or mood boosts. Too much SHG is a bad thing because it
can increase testosterone levels but still cause the person to feel
testosterone deficient. What happens is that too much gets bound up and not
enough is left for free use. There are dietary and lifestyle changes that can
help to reduce the amount of SHBG in your system and this can help to increase
the amount of free testosterone floating around.

3.
Albumin-bound Testosterone: Albumin is a liver-produced protein that binds up
the remainder of the testosterone and is responsible for stabilizing
extra-cellular fluids. While this version is also inactive, the bind with
albumin is not as strong as the one with SHBG, so it can be easily broken to
create free testosterone. Since this type is easy to break apart, doctors
typically count this along with the free testosterone when checking your
levels.

The Making of Testosterone

Making Testosterone Naturally

The majority
of testosterone (95%) in the body is made in the testicles, with a small
percentage coming from the adrenal glands located on top of the kidneys.

The
process starts in the brain. The hypothalamus detects that more testosterone is
needed and releases the gonadotropin-releasing hormone. This hormone then
travels to the pituitary gland located at the back of the brain.

When it
reaches the pituitary gland, the hormone triggers the release of two other
hormones; FSH or follicle stimulating hormone and LH or luteinizing hormone.
Both of these make their way to the testicles via the bloodstream.

In the
testicles, the FSH promotes sperm production and LH stimulates the Leydig cells
which create more testosterone.

These
Leydig cells are able to convert cholesterol into testosterone, so the bacon
and eggs you had for breakfast is a good thing. In the event there is not
enough cholesterol in the blood stream, your testicles are able to produce
enough to convert. It is worth noting that while this can be done if necessary,
it is not ideal to rely on this form of cholesterol, so be sure you get enough
on your diet. When the Leydig cells have to create the cholesterol, it can
eventually inhibit their ability to produce testosterone at all.

Testosterone then returns to the bloodstream and most of it will attach to
either SHBG or albumin and become biologically inactive. What little percentage
remains free, starts traveling through the body and when the hypothalamus
detects that there is enough in our system, it signals the pituitary glans to
stop releasing FSH and LH. Without LH, the testicles slow down the testosterone
production.

There are a
number of steps involved in the complicated process of testosterone production,
which means there are a number of ways it can be impacted. Understanding how
testosterone is made and stored in the body can help you to ensure that nothing
interferes with production. There are any number of reasons that this cycle can
be thrown off course and the result will be lower testosterone levels. It is
important to know how diet and lifestyle can help support this entire system
and all the parts needed for healthy testosterone production.